Spondias mombin LEAVES ATTENUATE SOME BIOMARKERS OF ERECTILE AND CARDIOVASCULAR DYSFUNCTION INDUCED BY PAROXETINE HYDROCHLORIDE IN RATS

Abstract

Spondias mombin leaf is a medicinal plant used in folk medicine to increase male sexual function, however, studies providing scientific proof are scarce. Therefore, this study examined the regulatory influence of Spondias mombin leaf ethanol extract (EESML) parameters of erectile activity in male Wistar rats. Of the thirty rats used, five of them, naïve control, as (Group A) was given distilled water while the twenty-five were first administered paroxetine orally for 21 days. After this period, they were reorganized. For seven days, the following treatments were administered to five groups of five rats each: group B received distilled water; group C received 4 mg/kg sildenafil citrate; group D received 15 mg/kg EESML; group E received 30 mg/kg EESML; and group F received 45 mg/kg EESML. On the eighth day, all animals were sacrificed under dichloromethane anesthesia. The study then assessed the inhibitory potential of EESML on Phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE-5), Nitric oxide (NO) and arginase activity in penile and cardiac homogenates. The concentration of Troponin I and lipid profile were assessed specifically in serum as well as 17β-, 3β- hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases and testosterone concentration increased in parallel with the significant (p < 0.05) inhibition of PDE-5 and arginase by EESML in both tissues, which was more pronounced at higher doses. During comparison with untreated and naïve controls, the specific activities of 17β, 3β hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, and testosterone levels were considerably higher (p<0.05) in all EESML-treated groups. Inversely, EESML significantly decreased the amount of Troponin I in the serum. Similar trend was noticed in the serum concentration of lipids except for HDL-C which increased following treatment with EESML. EESML may be effective in reversing erectile dysfunction, as evidenced by its favorable comparison with it regulatory activity in rats treated with sildenafil citrate and naïve control, particularly in the group in which 45 mg/kg body weight of EESML was administered.